Hope Church 5K Raises $10K For Camp Ojibway

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Members and non-members of showed their support to the tune of more than $10,000 May 19 by participating in the third annual .

"It was tons of fun planning the event," Shelly Nelson, an event organizer, told Richfield Patch in an e-mail. "The people at the City of Richfield were so nice and the police officers that came to help make the event safe were easy to work with. So many great volunteers came out to help and give of their time. We had more non-Hope Church participants running, walking and waddling this year than ever."

The church has run Camp Ojibway in Eden Valley, MN since the summer of 1959, welcoming both young and old camp-goers to the 3.25-acre refuge. The 5K event helps cover general costs and programming needs at the camp, as well as a scholarship fund to help those who can’t afford to go.

The top 5K finisher was track and field member Obsa Ali with a time of 18:16, followed by fellow student with a time of 18:43. (Ali and Mugwanja did not accept awards for their high finishes, as they wanted to remain eligible to compete in coming high school state competitions.) For full results, go to minnesotarunner.com.

Sponsors of the event were , , Caribou Coffee, Burger King and Southdale YMCA.

To date, the annual event has raised more than $40,000 for the camp. Next year's race is scheduled for May 18.

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